Ronald Acuna Jr. Returning and Still in Hunt for NL MVP, HR Crown

Atlanta Braves right fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. has been activated from the injured list and remains an MVP candidate despite missing the first three weeks of the Major League Baseball season.

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Here is a look at the favorites for National League MVP at DraftKings Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, and BetMGM.

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Without playing a game yet this season, Acuna Jr. has the second shortest odds for National League MVP at both DraftKings and FanDuel as he returns from a torn ACL that he suffered last season.

This is not undeserved, either. He has a track record of massive production, and the 24-year-old has 162-game averages of 43 home runs, 32 stolen bases, and a slash line of .281/.376/.549 in 395 games. Acuna Jr. will not play 162 games this season, as the Braves have already played 19 without him. But if he stays healthy the rest of the way and plays 135-plus, there is still a path for him to win MVP.

In the 82 games that he played in 2021 before getting injured, Acuna had a 4.3 FanGraphs WAR. For reference, there were two players in the National League last season with a fWAR of 7.0 or better in 2021: Fernando Tatis Jr. (7.3) and Juan Soto (7.0). With Tatis Jr. still recovering from a broken wrist, Soto holds on to his role as the early favorite. However, his power is not what it has been in previous seasons so that is all the more reason to look at Acuna Jr. as a viable contender.

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In addition to being in the hunt for the National League MVP, Acuna Jr. still has a chance to be the MLB Home Run Leader. He is priced at +10000 at Caesars, which has him among the longshots but there are few players with his home run track record.

The favorite to hit the most home runs in MLB this season is Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., priced at +350, even though he has five home runs in 19 games. The early home run leader is New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who has eight, followed by Colorado Rockies first baseman C.J. Cron, who has seven. Those are healthy leads on Acuna Jr., but not necessarily insurmountable either.

Acuna Jr. brings a ton of value to the lineup, and the Braves need all the help they can get right now. The defending World Series champions have started the season with an 8-11 record, sitting fourth in the National League East, 5.5 games behind the New York Mets. The Braves are priced at +235 at DraftKings, +220 at FanDuel, and +210 at Caesars to win the NL East.

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